I should probably call these blog posts, "Chinese Idiom every other week," but that's how this time of year goes I suppose. So without further ado, here is the 5th installment of Chinese idioms.
画蛇添足 huàshétiānzú - Draw a snake... then add feet!
The meaning could be translated, " don't waste your time with meaningless toils that detract from your main purpose."
It all starts with with the timeless question, "who gets the last bottle of alcohol?"
An official of the Chu state gave his men a bottle of wine and all realized that there was really only enough for one of them to enjoy. So... a competition was devised to decided who gets the bottle of wine. The 3 men decided that whoever could draw a snake the fastest would get the bottle.
One of the three finished so quickly that he scoffed at the slowness of the others and decided to add feet since he figured he had time. But just as he was finishing one of the other men grabbed the bottle after he finished his snake saying, "That's not a snake! Snake don't have feet. The bottle is rightfully mine!"
So while the second man wasn't the fastest drawer he did end up with the prize. Sometimes extra energy and actions actually can be more harmful than helpful. Keep focused on what needs to get done and don't waste time with unnecessary effort that doesn't get you closer to your prize.
This one even has a sweet youtube video. (sorry only in Chinese)
This phrase reminds me of the famous idiom, "keep your eye on the prize." which has roots in the Pauline letter of Philippians, "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
I have been recently trying to find idioms with not a perfect translation but get at least part of the essence. So here are some that hopefully get in the same ball park:
Home in
Knuckle down, buckle down
Have one's heart set on
Stay on track
Don't major in the minors
Going off on a rabbit trail
So advise for this week, stop drawing feet on snake!
Be productive but don't spend too much time on something if it is good enough. As a teacher this rings true many times when I am preparing for class. Should I spend another 30 minutes finding the perfect picture for that slide on my PPT or get that extra sleep my body has been needing?
Get your rest, stop drawing feet on those snakes.
